I admit to watching question time on TV in the National Parliament from time to time.
Today, the PM’s immediate action with this package to the threat to growth by the international capitalist financial crisis is prudent.
Turnbull was unsure. The opposition weak.
Every Labor Minister was in fine dominant form.
The PM attacked extreme capitalism.
Next, it is the task to spend on nation building programmes for delivery in 2009-2010.
Nation building may include bringing forward infrastructure, emergency shelters for the homeless, public works, more public hospital beds and staffing in public health, building on today’s announcement by training for green jobs, and an industrial relations system fair for workers.
In this nation building, some forms of democratisation – having citizens some voice – in decision-making, not just the big end of town, is needed.
Further, the government should not underestimate broad belief in another prudent move for a further 1% cut in interest rates.
I have a query about the first home buyers scheme not being means tested and the greed and rorts of our upper classes.
Earlier that morning, I attended in one of the parliament’s committee rooms the launch of a must read new IR journal The Debate by Lisa Heap the Director of AIER the Australian Institute of Employment Rights. www.aierights.com.au
The point is that the government can read the proposals. The DPM can adopt the reasonable arguments presented by this independent IR group.
But to date, the AIER has much valid criticism and really cannot even present their case to the government…so much for consultation.
Some critical points made by Paul Munro, Vice President Independent AIER at the launch that if not addressed questions the government’s implementation of ‘fairness’ to employees.
‘* the proposed safety net was “too rigidly strung from the populist polls of direct parliamentary and executive legislation and regulation”, and “had big holes in it”. Parliament should not be left to lay down employment standards, and contrasted as an example the AIRC’s reasoning in its 1994 report on junior rates with the quality of the debates on the matter in both houses;
* renewed protection of security of employment was “delayed, tenuously available [with the question of whether an employer had 15 or less employees open to "extraordinary antics"] and fell short of the fairness standard in important respects;
* an “over-prescriptive” legislative regime would circumscribe collective agreement-making and bargaining to a degree inconsistent with international standards and maintenance of a fair balance in workplaces;
* freedom to associate for collective bargaining purposes including the fostering of an employee “voice” in workplaces was almost invisible in the safety net standards and modern awards; and
* by retaining direct parliamentary determination of the NES, and by effectively abolishing workers’ rights to arbitration by state and federal tribunals, Forward with Fairness undermined the value the electorate “demonstrably attaches” to maintaining the role of an independent industrial umpire.
The AIER Charter of Employment Rights is widely supported by employers and unions. (see their book and pamphlet.)
Fair Work Australia as a minimum could adopt the AIER proposals.
You would have thought rather than the ‘fundamentalism of the Howard era if employers and their workers and unions want to freely determine collective bargaining and regulating work they would be strongly supported by the IR system.
In this first edition of the debate Professor Ron McCallum critics DPM’s plans to date, such as there will be no bargaining in good faith without the remedy of the AIRC making orders on employment rights and conditions to resolve bargaining impasses.
I will deal with the other forceful changes required later.
Lisa Heap also launched the AIER model to measure fairness in the workplace.
More tomorrow…
Australian Institute of Employment Rights lobbying document
AIER wants the government to make changes to its Forward with
Fairness legislation. The AIER lobbying document spells out the changes that AIER thinks need to be made to the system of workplace regultation.
Industrial fairness the essentials is the debate with DPM Gillard.
The Debate is an initiative of the Australian Institute of Employment Rights an independent coalition of employers, employees, unions, academics and lawyers who collaborate to promote positive work relationships.
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Read about it aat http://www.aierights.com.au/
nd download
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